The Micro-City Project: A progress Report

This is a report on social science aspects of the Micro-City Project conducted at St. John\u27s University at Collegeville, Minnesota. The program began in June, 1968, and this report covers activities which range from attitudinal survey research to mathematical models

Community versus local energy in a context of climate emergency

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Nature Research via the DOI in this record.UK policy on decentralized energy has shifted from community energy to local energy. This signals reduced support for grassroots, citizen-led action in favour of institutional partnerships and company-led investments, which puts at risk the urgent, long-term social and technological transformations required in a climate emergency

Physical outcome measure for critical care patients following intensive care discharge

Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the most suitable physical outcome measures to be used with critical care patients following discharge. ICU survivors experience physical problems such as reduced exercise capacity and intensive care acquired weakness. NICE guideline ‘Rehabilitation after critical illness’ (1) recommends the use of outcome measures however does not provide any specific guidance. A recent Cochrane review noted wide variability in measures used following ICU discharge (2). Methods: Discharged ICU patients attended a five week multidisciplinary programme. Patients’ physical function was assessed during the programme, at 6 months and 12 months post discharge. Three outcome measures were included in the initial two cohorts. The Six Minute Walk Test (6MWT) and the Incremental Shuttle Walk test (ISWT) were chosen as they have been used within the critical care follow up setting (2). The Chester Step Test (CST) is widely thought to be a good indicator of ability to return to work (one of the programmes primary aims). Ethics approval was waived as the programme was part of a quality improvement initiative. Results: Data was collected for the initial patients attending the programme (n = 13), median age was 52 (IQR = 38-72), median ICU LOS was 19 days (IQR = 4-91), median APACHE II was 23 (IQR = 19-41) and 11 were men. One patient was so physically debilitated that the CST or ISWT could not be completed however a score was achieved using the 6MWT. Another patient almost failed to achieve level 1 of the ISWT. Subsequent patients for this project (total n = 47) have all therefore been tested using the 6MWT. Good inter-rater and intrarater reliability and validity have been reported for the 6MWT (3). Conclusions: Exercise capacity measurement is not achievable for some patients with either the ISWT or the CST due to the severity of their physical debilitation. Anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and depression are common psychological problems post discharge (4), therefore using a test with a bleep is not appropriate. Therefore, the 6MWT is the most appropriate physical outcome measure to be used with critical care patients post discharge

A critical and empirical analysis of the national-local ‘gap’in public responses to large-scale energy infrastructures

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Taylor & Francis (Routledge) via the DOI in this record.A national-local ‘gap’ is often used as the starting point for analyses of public responses to large scale energy infrastructures. We critique three assumptions found in that literature: the public's positive attitudes, without further examining other type of perceptions at a national level; that local perceptions are best examined through a siting rather than place-based approach; that a gap exists between national and local responses, despite a non-correspondence in how these are examined. Survey research conducted at national and local levels about electricity transmission lines in the UK confirm these criticisms. Results do not support a gap between national and local levels; instead, both differences and similarities were found. Results show the value of adopting a place-based approach and the role of surveys to inform policy making are discussed.This research was supported by the Research Council of Norway (SusGrid Grant No. 207774) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (FlexNet: EP/EO4011X/1). The authors would also like to acknowledge the beneficial comments and advice of their colleagues at the Environment and Sustainability Research Group, Geography, University of Exeter, regarding previous versions of this paper, as well as the helpful comments of the three anonymous reviewers that commented on it. Thanks are also due to colleagues from the SusGrid project, specifically Audun Ruud and Oystein Aas, and the participants in the research, for their contributions to this paper